In the Tall Grass

In the Tall Grass begins with a sister and brother who pull off to the side of the road after hearing a young boy crying for help from beyond the tall grass. Within minutes they are disoriented, in deeper than seems possible, and they've lost one another. The boy's cries are more and more desperate. What follows is a terrifying, entertaining, and masterfully told tale, as only Stephen King and Joe Hill can deliver.

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Publisher's Summary

Mile 81 meets "N." in this collaboration between Stephen King and Joe Hill.

As USA Today said of Stephen King's Mile 81: "Park and scream. Could there be any better place to set a horror story than an abandoned rest stop?" In the Tall Grass begins with a sister and brother who pull off to the side of the road after hearing a young boy crying for help from beyond the tall grass. Within minutes they are disoriented, in deeper than seems possible, and they've lost one another. The boy's cries are more and more desperate. What follows is a terrifying, entertaining, and masterfully told tale, as only Stephen King and Joe Hill can deliver.

of the 160 audio books i have listened to. This one made me proclaim out loud , almost screaming. "OH MY GOD !...........OH MY GOD......NO effing WAY" This will be the most crazy thing you have ever heard. I promise. Damn!

We picked this up for a little Halloween road trip being huge fans of Joe Hill and having really enjoyed King's last few books.

And the beginning of this story is so, so, creepy. And wonderfully narrated.

When the explanation for what's in the grass comes, though, the story veers into King territory pretty hardcore. It's violent and disturbing and much more "The Regulators"-era King than "Nightmares and Dreamscapes," with a little too much "Dreamcatcher" in there. Yuck.

We don't regret the experience and it IS well written and wonderfully read, but know what you're getting into. We'd been hoping it would be a little more ofa Joe Hill story, but it is wonderful to see the two of them writing together.

The Path Between the Seas to The Great Bridge ~ Kagan's Peloponnesian War to Gaddis' Cold One ~ Mornings on Horseback to a River of Doubt ~ Tom to Huck ~ Lennie to Charley ~ Cadfael to Cross ~ Rhyme to Reacher ~ Blomkvist and Salander to Wallander and Wallander ~ Moving Cheese or Eating Frogs ~ On the Road and Into Thin Air ~ The End of History to A Short History of Everything to ... well ... everything else.

Read my reviews, I like horror stories. I am a great fan of both Steven King and his son Joe Hill. They are amazingly creative and, at their best, they build our terror as they build their tales.

At their best. This is not their best. This is not in the same zip code as their best. This is a cheap, ugly story with none of the nuance or suspense we can usually expect from both King and Hill.

I will admit that the first half of the book builds interest. Knowing these great writers, we are certain that they will redeem this introduction masterfully. And we are wrong. At some point, after wading through the grotesque muck of the last several chapters, we find ourselves asking "Is this it? Is this all they've got?" And then we take a shower.

This is the work of juvenile hacks. There is nothing here other than an apparent quest to find the most vile imagery. The plot lines are broadly derivative of other works (Children of the Corn, Blair Witch Project). The thrills do not build to a climax but are one-offs, relying for their power on the gross.

Still tempted? Well (Spoiler Alert) ... how anxious are you to spend a couple hours following a pregnant girl and her brother as they are lured into a Kansas field and become lost; as she confronts a supernaturally tainted madman who beats her into miscarriage; as her brother is similarly turned mad and feeds her the fresh corpse of her baby; and as she too is lost to madness and joins in luring others into the field? If this appeals, you deserve the experience.

I should've heeded the warnings in other reviews. I'm a Stephen King fan, and didn't expect a lighthearted feel-good story, but this book was just too disturbing to finish (so I can't comment on the ending). It did start off very well and the premise itself was very clever, but about halfway through, I got the kind of sick feeling I imagine I'd get from watching a snuff film.

I would recommend this book only to those who are not offended by extreme grotesqueries.

What did you like best about this story?

The story was a bit predictable but it was so raw and startling that I did not expect a lot of the imagery that took place.

Which character – as performed by Stephen Lang – was your favorite?

The brother sister relationship established at the beginning of the book built a great foundation for the reader to get pulled in. Even in the short duration of the pages - the characters were crafted carefully and you actually get to know them before the darkness takes over the story theme.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It was over the top blood and guts! I wasn't expecting the punch in the stomach that it provided.

maybe if they spent more time on the second half of the story would have been nice,it's like they had a good story but they didn't have a ending but they did it anyway,O-lets throw in something really sick maybe they won't notes the ending. don't spend the money if you already did turn it off half-way thew .Stephen Lang is great, but you can only do so much with a bad story,,

This was an excellent scary story. It was gory, which just made it that more scary. In Kansas they don't have woods, so stories about getting lost in he woods does not scare anyone. In Kansas they do have tall grass, wheat, sunflower fields, corn, etc. It was good from start to finish, first half and second half.

I like Stephen King, I like Joe Hill and I like King and Hill together. I don't know what else to say.

The story captures the constant reader from the beginning. It's a short story, and it leaves you wanting more. I wouldn't be surprised if King will elaborate further on the evil in this story, in some future stories. Kind of the way he did with Desperation and The Regulators.

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